“Alcohol based hand sanitizers are prohibited for exports,” Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification.

In the wake of increasing cases of Covid-19 in the country, the Union government Wednesday extended the ban on export of alcohol-based hand sanitiser to ensure its availability in the domestic market.

“Alcohol based hand sanitizers are prohibited for exports,” Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification.

Previously, on March 19, the central government had imposed a similar ban on the  export of ventilators, disposable masks, coveralls and other essentials necessary in treating coronavirus cases.

“To support manufacturers to access lower cost raw materials and maximise capacity, the short term temporary ban on export of raw materials is good news for mask manufacturers, while the ban on export of masks is bad news for exporters of masks and overseas buyers who had paid advance for urgent delivery,” Rajiv Nath, forum coordinator, AiMeD had told The Indian Express.

Also, on February 25 , DGFT had banned exports of personal protection equipment (PPE), including N-95 masks. At that time, surgical and disposable (2/3 ply) masks were not prohibited. Between April and November 2019, India exported about $845 million worth of those products. In 2018-19, the exports were $1.27 billion, according to data from the Commerce Ministry.